Sleep changes associated with psychotropic drugs are common enough to justify routinely obtaining a baseline sleep diary before beginning treatment, even when the initial screening for sleep disorders indicates that no further investigation is needed.

Sleep-associated movement disorders are common in the general population. When patients complain of sleep disturbance, psychiatrists should consider,
and question for, features of nocturnal movement disorder.

Hollywood has had a long-standing love affair with psychiatry and its portrayals of electroconvulsive therapy reflect and influence public attitudes toward the treatment. One-third of medical students decreased their support for the treatment after being shown ECT scenes from movies, and the proportion of students who would dissuade a family member or friend from having ECT rose from less than 10% prior to viewing to almost 25% afterward. So what is the legacy of portrayals that have been so abhorrent, and are there any exceptions to the rule?

This is the second of two articles regarding herbal medicines as discussed at the American Psychiatric Association's annual meeting in Toronto. Potential benefits and risks of kava, St. John's wort and hoasca were considered at the recent American Psychiatric Association's symposium on herbal medicine.